Nutcracker Sleepy Hollow
by otaku9
Summary: Katrina Van Tassel is quickly growing up. She has given up her dolls long ago. So why is one, one that looks like a handsome man, taking her interest? But what if this doll wasn't just a doll, but a runaway prince with a killer step-mother who wants to live forever so she can be queen forever? Katrina will have to help this prince get back his throne. Crossover of Tim Burton chars.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own any version of the Nutcracker, original, ballet, Barbie, or Lacewood. I also don't own Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow or any of his other work.

Nutcracker: Sleepy Hollow

Mother told me a tale long ago. About how she met my father. She told me it was a magical tale that had to be believed. I did. And now, if you believe, I will tell you the tale.

It was Christmas Eve 1799 in a small little village my mother grew up in called Sleepy Hollow. Inside the house of the leading citizen in the village, a man named Baltus Van Tassel, The whole house was decorated in Christmas cheer. Garland was strung on every horizontal surface imaginable. A wreath sat on the mantel of the fireplace. A huge tree was hung, decorated in colorful balls, candles, and candy canes. A beautiful angel that resembled my mother sat at the top. Baltus Van Tassel himself and his wife, Elizabeth Van Tassel, were prepping for the big Christmas Eve party. There was only one problem…

"Give back my brush, John!" Out of a bedroom door, a young 10 year old boy with short brown hair and brown eyes was running down the stairs, a silver hairbrush in his hand.

"If you want it, Kat, you're going to have to get it!" John shouted, racing with the brush.

"No fair, John," The girl he called Kat said, "I'm wearing a corset!" Out of that same door came a beautiful young girl with wavy blonde hair and brown eyes. This was my mother, Katrina Van Tassel, the boy John, my uncle, is named Johnathan Masbeth Van Tassel. This Christmas Eve was the first time my mother had worn a corset.

She ran down the stairs after John. "Give it back! I have to get ready for the party!" Finally, Katrina had cornered John under the tree (Don't think like that!) "Give it." Katrina glared, her hand open.

"Fine." John groaned, giving back her hairbrush. She stepped back so that John could get out. "You used to be fun, now you're not!"

"What's going on?" In stomped their father, Baltus Van Tassel. "Are you two fighting again?"

"He stole my hairbrush!" Katina said, pointing to John.

"Only because I wanted her to play with me!" John insisted.

"John-"Oh, Katrina!" Their mother ran in and took in Katrina. "You look so beautiful!"

"She certainly does." Baltus agreed. "She looks like you, dear."

"Thanks, mom." Katrina blushed.

"Why don't you come upstairs," Elizabeth took the brush from her daughter, "And I'll brush your hair for you?"

"Okay then," Katrina said. The two went upstairs.

"And as for you, Johnathan Masbeth," Baltus said, using his first and middle name, "We have to get you ready for the party." And the two went up to John's room.

1 hour later

"Now remember, children," Baltus told them, "I want you to be on your best behavior. Understand?"

"Is Uncle Drosselmeyer coming?" John asked.

"Oh I love Uncle Drosselmeyer!" Katrina exclaimed.

"He certainly spoils you children." Elizabeth giggled. Uncle Fabian Drosselmeyer was a small-time toymaker. Despite this, he made the most amazing toys anyone had ever seen. People paid quite a bit of money for them, but he never kept the money.

"Yes he is coming," Baltus answered, "But you must understand that you two have to behave. Okay?"

"Yes, father." The two said. Just then, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" Baltus said, being the head of the house. As soon as the door was opened, it was kept open, for so many people had come, despite this being a small village. Pretty soon, the parlor was crowded with people…all except for one.

"Where is he, mother?" Katrina asked as she stood in the corner. "I can't see him."

"He probably is having some trouble getting here." Elizabeth explained. Uncle Drosselmeyer lived far away in New York. "It is snowing hard out there after all."

A knock on the door came.

"That must be him."

"I'll get it!" Katrina grinned, racing through the people to the door.

"No!" John yelled. "I'll get it!" They both reached the door at the exact same time and were pushing and pulling each.

"Stop it! I'm getting it! No! Yes!"

"Children!" Baltus shouted. "Stop this nonsense!"

"You're right, father," Katrina backed away from John, "John, why don't you open the door?" John just sighed and he did indeed open the door.

In the doorway was a tall man with black spiky hair and bright blue eyes. He smiled brightly, his teeth pointed fangs.

"Uncle Drosselmeyer!" Katrina and John cried out.

"Ah, klinen," He said, bending down to the two, "You have grown so big."

"I'm not little anymore," Katrina said, "I'm a lady."

"Ah yes you are, dear," Uncle Drosselmeyer said, "So are becoming so beautiful."

"What about me, Uncle Drosselmeyer?" John asked.

"Well, you're becoming quite a strong man." Uncle Drosselmeyer said.

"Fabian," Baltus smiled, patting his shoulder, "How have you been? How's New York?"

"Busy as usual. New York I mean," Uncle Drosselmeyer said, "But I made a bunch of gifts for the children in the city. And they were sure happy. Speaking of which," He bent down again to Katrina and John, "I have a bunch of presents in the coach. Would you like to help me bring them in?"

"Of course." Katrina said.

"Yeah!" John said and the two raced out to the coach, Drosselmeyer following after them.

In no time at all, the gifts were brought in and placed under the tree.

"Attention, klinen," Drosselmeyer announced, "It is now time for the children to have their presents." The children cheered and in an organized manner, each child got their gift. Pretty soon, there were three gifts left.

"These two gifts," Drosselmeyer explained, in between two big boxes, "Is for all the children to share." The children ran up to the box and began to unwrap it. 5 seconds later, the box was open to reveal a pretty ballerina.

"She's so pretty!" Katrina exclaimed. Drosselmeyer went over to the ballerina, winded her up with a giant key and she blinked her eyes twice and began to dance. She moved gracefully, spinning and jumping and waving around the space. Finally, she curtsied and closed her eyes, falling limp into Drosselmeyer's arms.

He unwrapped the second box to reveal a huge soldier. He winded it up too and the soldier marched around, pretending to aim his musket and saluting Drosselmeyer. Then, he also closed his eyes and fell into Drosselmeyer's arms. The two toys were put back in the boxes and carried away.

"Last but not least, my dear Katrina," He picked up the last box, "This is for you."

Katrina took the box and tried to open it up without any ripping.

"Oh go on, Katrina," Baltus said, "Rip at it already." She obeyed and opened the box to find…

"Oh! He's beautiful!" She exclaimed. Inside was a figure dressed in black and covered with medals. The skin of the figure was pale, with brown eyes and wavy black hair. He looked so real. "He looks so real!"

"He does, doesn't he?" Drosselmeyer said. "You know, there's a story behind this handsome young man."

"There is?" Katrina asked.

"Come, sit with me," Drosselmeyer said, "And I shall tell you the tale." They sat together by the fire.

"His name is Ichabod Crane and he was a prince from a beautiful and peaceful kingdom. Everyone was happy and carefree and peaceful. Under the rule of Ichabod's parents, that is. But something happened to his mother. She disappeared and no one knew where she was. His father became depressed, until he met a nice woman that is. Her name was Lucinda and while she was kind and comforting to the grieving king, she was horrible and almost abusive to the 7 year old prince. His only comfort was in a special toy his mother had given him before she…vanished. And his books. The king got married to Lucinda and she not only became Queen, but Ichabod's stepmother too.

"Since the king was still a bit depressed and rather ill, due to his old age, Queen Lucinda took over running the kingdom and it fell into despair. Ichabod knew what his new stepmother was doing was wrong, but since he was only a boy, he was powerless to stop her. He grew into a young but quiet man and was almost old enough to take the throne.

"Lucinda, however, didn't want to give up ruling the kingdom, so months before Ichabod's 20th birthday, she began to work on a potion that would make her immortal. All she needed was one special ingredient; the prince's blood. And she would have gotten it too, had it not been for a servant of his named Emily, who snuck in on Lucinda and warned Ichabod.

"Ichabod decided that he would run away that night and seek help from the Sugar Plum Princess. He wanted to go alone, but Emily, and his other servants, Edward, Victor, Victoria, Carolyn, Barnabas, and Sam wanted to help. So they all snuck out, but Lucinda, who was also a witch, found out and sent out her guards to capture him and bring him back alive. It was a long chase through a forest called the Never-Ending Forest, for it seemed never to end.

"His servants sacrificed themselves to make sure he got to the princess. They didn't die, but their punishments were far worse; Emily, Victor, and Victoria were tortured and then turned into the undead, forced to never die, and to never live. Edward's hands were cut off and were replaced with scissors. Ashamed and so alone, Edward fled far away, never to be seen again. Carolyn was cursed and Barnabas were cursed to be horrid creatures for the rest of their lives. For Carolyn, a vicious werewolf, for Barnabas, a bloodthirsty vampire. And Sam, kind, loyal Sam, his tongue was cut out and he was forced to serve the Queen forever.

"Ichabod, meanwhile, was almost to the princess's castle, when he was stabbed in the shoulder." Drosselmeyer lifted the part of the shirt that covered the shoulder and removed it to reveal a cut scar right there. It was pink.

"But he didn't die, because his mother's love, a magical love that had protected him ever since he was a newborn, had spared him.

"Angered, the guard that had stabbed him instead placed a spell on him. He turned the prince into a doll, the very one in your hands right now. The guards left him there, but Queen Lucinda wasn't happy because now she didn't have the prince's blood and the guard's spell was irreversible. Or at least, by anyone else's hand. Once the guards were gone, the Sugar Plum Princess appeared and cradled the doll in her arms. She couldn't change him back, but she could put a new spell on him. One that one day soon, would come true. The prince would only be reverted back if one loved him for who he was, and vice-versa. She then transported him to another world, where he was placed in the care of a toymaker."

"You, right?" Katrina asked.

"Da," Drosselmeyer answered, "And to this day, he waits for his one true love while the Queen, whose husband had died shortly after Ichabod's disappearance, now officially ruled the kingdom. She was called the Mouse Queen, or the Rat Queen secretly, because she was a cruel and awful person. The kingdom fell into even more despair because the one person who would have ended her reign was gone now, dead to those that don't know the true story. Even the cursed servants thought their master was dead."

"You're really good at making up stories, uncle," Katrina said, "But your endings need a lot of work."

"Prinzessin," Drosselmeyer said, "I can assure you that it's not just a story."

"Well I think he looks cool!" John came over and sat by them. "Can I hold him, please?"

"John-"It'll only be a minute." He grabbed onto the doll and pulled it from Katrina. When he did, its arm came off.

"Johnathan!" Katrina shouted, grabbing the doll and its arm from John. "You broke him!"

"I didn't mean too!" John said in defense. "What's the point of a toy if you can't play with it." John walked away and went back to his own toys.

"He broke him!" Katrina cried, tears coming from her eyes. "He always breaks everything!"

"He's just a boy, Katrina," Drosselmeyer said reasonably, "Boys can be a bit rough with toys." He stood up. "I'll fix him, and he will be as good as new." A few hours later, the guests had long left and John had already gone up to bed. It was almost Katrina's bedtime, but she refused to go upstairs until Ichabod was fixed. Finally, Drosselmeyer came back with the now fixed Ichabod, his arm in a sling.

"There you are, my dear," He held him out to her, "No need for tears."

"Thank you." She said, holding the doll tightly in her arms.

"He should rest, though," Drosselmeyer said, "Just for tonight. You can play with him in the morning." Reluctantly, Katrina gave back the Ichabod doll to him and he placed it in a little doll bed, tucking the covers around it as if it were a human child.

"Come on, Katrina," Elizabeth said, "It is time for bed." But an hour later, Katrina was still in bed and she still could not sleep. _What if John gets out of bed and destroys him again? I just have to make sure he's still in one piece._

She got out of bed and, quietly, snuck downstairs to the parlor. The doll was still in the little bed. She sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness!" She picked up the doll and held it in her arms. "I thought for sure that horrid Johnathan would hurt you again. You know," she stroked the doll's hair, "I stopped playing with mine a long time ago and I have long since lost interest in them. But you, you're different from any other doll. It's just…you almost seem like a real person." She sat down on the couch. "If you were real, what would you think of me? You would probably be rather charming, you would probably think I was beautiful, ask me to dance. Maybe even court with me. Then we could get married, have our own children. We could…be happy." She sighed. "If only you were real." She soon fell asleep, the doll still in her arms, dreaming of the handsome prince from Drosselmeyer's story.

20 minutes later, the clock struck twelve, the owl on top of the clock shifting, changing form. Its legs extended, wings turning into arms, back becoming a long black cloak, head growing familiar tousled hair, pointed fangs coming out from the mouth. Drosselmeyer perched on top of the clock waved his hand and the whole room shifted too.

The tree grew taller, the clock grew taller, the fireplace, the couch, even the doll grew to be the same size as the girl in its arms.

"Uh?" Katrina started awake, the last bong of the clock having awoken her. "What? Is the room bigger? Or am I smaller?" Before her questions could be answered, several men taller than her came out through the fireplace. "Hey!" She shouted, climbing down from the couch, "Who are you and what are you doing in my house?"

"Ma'am," one of the men said, "We are searching for a prince. He looks like this." Another men gave the man a picture which he showed to Katrina. The young man in the picture looked exactly like the doll up on the couch. "His step-mother his missing him dearly. If you know where he is, it would be greatly appreciated."

_It can't be! This sounds like Uncle Drosselmeyer's story! But it can't be-_"I'm sorry, sir," Katrina lied, speaking politely, "But I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

"Ma'am," the man grinned widely. Too widely. "I'm afraid you don't understand the situation at hand. The prince ran away many years ago and his step-mother is heartbroken. What with her husband dead and a whole kingdom to run, it gets to be very depressing and stressing. So if you would _kindly _tell us where the prince is…we will leave you and your loved ones alone."

"That sounds like a threat," Katrina said calmly, "And you can't have him. None of you!"

The man growled. "MEN! ATTACK!" And on order, several more men came down from the fireplace and had swords out to Katrina.

"Now gentlemen," She said calmly, although she was fearful, "Why don't we just calm down and have some tea?"

"Bloody hell with tea!" The man shouted. His face was pale, too pale. He had crazy brown eyes and his hair was both black and white. "We want the prince! Now hand him over or else!"

"No!" Katrina shouted. The man pulled out an object, flipped it open to reveal a blade and slashed at Katrina. "Ow!" _That actually hurt! This is for real!_

"Now," The man grinned wickedly, "I don't want to cut into that pretty face of yours. So, tell us where the prince is. Now."

"No!" Katrina shouted once more. "I don't care if you kill me! He is not yours to take! And I hope that queen of yours burns in hell!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!" The man screamed, raising his blade. He thrust.

Katrina Van Tassel expected pain and the blackness of death. A bright light. But none of that came. Katrina opened her eyes to see…

"It's you!" The doll stood in front of her, alive and life-sized. He held up the man's blade with his own sword.

"Ah, your majesty," the man backed away with his blade, bowing before him, "Finally decided to wake up, I see?"

"Sweeney," the prince growled out the man's name, "I expected you would come and try to finish the job." His white shirt had slipped down, revealing the stab scar.

"Oh no," Sweeney said, "We're not here to kill you. Your step-mother misses you dearly."

"Tell her the feeling is not mutal!" The prince shouted out.

"Well, you can tell her yourself." Sweeney said. "You're coming home, sire."

"Over my dead body." The prince spat.

"That will be the idea." Sweeney gestured his head to a guard behind him. Katrina was so focused on the prince in front of her that she didn't notice the guard that was standing next to her.

"Agh!" The prince cried out as he was stabbed in the back.

"While we can't kill you," Sweeney said, kicking him in the face, "We can still weaken you enough to take you back home. Excellent work, Barkis."

"As always sir," The guard said.

"You're going to go night-night, prince." And Sweeney pulled out a large bat.

"I don't think so." Katrina growled, grabbing the prince's sword from its sheath and blocking the bat. He then stabbed Sweeney in the stomach.

"Bitch! Get her, Barkis!" The sword was flung out of Katrina's hand.

"Such a pretty lady," Barkis said, his sword at her neck, "What a pity." He said his sword up.

"Fabian," The prince whispered, "If there was ever a good time for help, now would be the time." The owl changed once more back into Drosselmeyer and swung his cape. The prince's sword came back to him and the prince, who managed to stand, stabbed Barkis in the chest. He slumped over, dead.

"This isn't the end, prince!" Sweeney yelled, he and the rest of his men fleeing. "You will be dead!" They went back up the fireplace.

"T-Thank you," Katrina stuttered, "I-If you hadn't come when you did I-"No, thank you." The prince said, gesturing to his broken arm.

"But I didn't do that, Uncle-"For your kindness. I…I haven't felt like that in…in so long." He picked up his sword, cleaned it, then sheathed it. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to face my step-mother and I need some friends to help." He walked towards the fireplace.

"Wait!" Katrina shouted, racing to catch up to him. "You're just going to leave me here!"

"It's too dangerous, what I'm about to do." The prince said. "The queen is a powerful foe to face, especially alone. You'll get hurt."

"I just saved your life there, I can fight with a sword too!" Katrina shouted. "Besides, your friends aren't going to help!" This made him stop.

"Of course my friends will help," The prince said, "What are you talking about?" This stopped Katrina.

"You really don't know, do you?" Katrina asked. The prince's silence told him all he needed to know. She sighed. "Your friends…your friends gave themselves up to save you. Emily, the one who warned you of the queen's plot, she along with Victor and Victoria, became the undead, stuck to be half-dead and half-alive. Edward got his hands cut off and replaced with blades. Carolyn and Barnabas were cursed to be a werewolf and a vampire respectively. And Sam, kind, loyal Sam, got his tongue cut out and is forced to serve the queen."

The prince said nothing, but his eyes told the story. He collapsed onto his knees, tears pouring from his eyes.

"No," He said to himself, "Not them. I tried to tell them not to come, but they…Oh Emily, oh lively Emily. Innocent Victor…he couldn't hurt a fly even if he wanted to. Dear Victoria…she shouldn't be succumbed to that kind of pain. Sweet Edward…he had quite a talent with his hands. Stubborn Carolyn…wouldn't take no for an answer. Barnabas...he was like a father to me when my own was sickly. Sam, oh Sam…he could always make me laugh when my days were dark. My friends, why do you suffer for my sake?"

"Because they knew you needed to survive to save their home from your step-mother." Katrina said, kneeling next to him. "Don't let their sacrifice be in vain. If you die, there's no hope for anyone there." _And I would be crushed if you die._

"You're right, Katrina." Her heart fluttered when he said her name. He stood up, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes.

"Here." Katrina held up her handkerchief.

"Thanks." He said solemnly, taking the handkerchief. When he was done, he silently handed it back to her. "Take my hand." She grabbed onto it. "Ready?" She nodded. "Good." A ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "Here we go." And, like a vacuum, up they were sucked.

_End I hope you enjoyed. Please review and tell me what you think. Next chapter they go to the kingdom. Tell me what you would like to see there. _

_ Kleinen-Little ones_

_ Da-Yes_

_ Prinzessin-princess_

_ The backstory was based on Lacewood's the Nutcracker Prince, although the only parts that were directly from it were the prince being turned into a doll and the true love thing._

_ Also, Lady Van Tassel's name I got from the Connecticut State Library website._


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own any version of the Nutcracker, original, ballet, Barbie, or Lacewood. I also don't own Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow.

Nutcracker: Sleepy Hollow

_Chapter 2_

Katrina's eyes opened slowly as she saw a bright blue sky above her.

"What?" She wondered, raising her head. Then she remembered what happened before; her doll coming to life, the psycho guard trying to kill her, going up through the fireplace. "A dream? Is that all it was?"

"I'm afraid not." She turned around suddenly to see the prince standing front of her, his hand held out. She looked down and saw silver green grass around her dress.

"Where are we?" She asked as she allowed him to help her stand up.

"Home." He answered simply. "This is Burbaka."

"It looks lovely." And it was true. It must have been early morning here for the sun was red and partly in the sky. Already, birds were chirping and Katrina could see small glowing people dancing through the sky happily. One of these glowing people came up to her and began to dance on her hand. She laughed at that.

"This is the only place Queen Lucinda's evil hasn't touched." He explained. The fairy leaped off Katrina's hand. "She has no power here, thanks to the Sugar Plum Princess."

"This is the Never-Ending Forest?" Katrina asked, remembering the name from the story.

"Yes it is." He explained. "I was coming to her for help before I became…you know. If anyone can help us, it's her." He stood up. "We have to move. Queen Lucinda may not have any power here, but that doesn't mean her guards can't."

"But I wounded them, remember?" Katrina said, following after him.

"You only wounded their leader." He corrected her. "And while he will be delayed, Lucinda will just have his deputy take his place. His deputy is far worse than her commander."

"Her?" Katrina asked. He nodded.

"Her name is Angelique and although angel is in her name, she is not one. She has magic. She was the one who turned me into the doll you saw. And believe me when I say, she has far more magical tricks up her sleeve. I don't even know if the Sugar Plum Princess can stand up against her. That is why we must hurry." The fairy was standing over them, listening.

She bowed midair before the prince and flew off.

"Maybe she knows where the princess is." Katrina suggested.

"You may be right. Come on." And the two ran off after the fairy. While Katrina was fast, she couldn't keep up with the prince due to her long nightgown. It caught on low hanging branches and was getting covered in dirt.

"Alright!" She exclaimed when she once again got snagged on a branch. She took the low part of her nightgown, which was torn and ripped it off, revealing her legs underneath the nightgown. She stood up. "This…feels weird."

"Come on, Katrina!" The prince shouted. And she ran off after him. Finally, the fairy stopped in the middle.

"Well, where's the castle?" She asked.

"The princess must have hidden it somewhere to hide from the queen and her guards." Ichabod deduced. The fairy nodded and pointed below their feet.

"She's living underground?" Katrina asked.

"It must be killing her to." The prince said sadly. "Fairies love the fresh air and nature. And to be so distant from it…" He looked up at the fairy. "How do we get in?" The fairy whispered something in his ear. "We have to say our titles?" The fairy nodded.

"But I don't have a title." Katrina said.

"No you do," the prince corrected her, "Fabian told me how your father is the leading citizen in Sleepy Hollow."

"A small village." She said.

"But still important as a kingdom. To the people, Sleepy Hollow _is_ a kingdom." He turned to the fairy and said our loud, "I am Prince Ichabod Crane, heir to the throne of Burbacka, son of the late…" He paused at this. "…late King Abraham Crane and the…late former Queen Vivian Forester Crane." He nodded for Katrina to take her turn.

"I…I am Katrina Van Tassel of Sleepy Hollow, heir to my father's inheritance when he long dies. Daughter of Baltus Van Tassel, leading citizen of Sleepy Hollow and his wife, Elizabeth Baker Van Tassel." Just then, a piece of ground slid open like a hatch.

"Thank you, fairy," Ichabod bowed, "I'll never forget you." The fairy bowed again and flew off.

"How do we get down?" Katrina asked. "It looks far down."

"I feel a ladder." Ichabod said. "We can climb down that. I'll go down first and you'll follow after. It's really dark down there and I don't want you to fall."

"Okay then." Katrina agreed. While she didn't want him treating her like some girl, he was grateful he was going down first. She was secretly scared.

"Count to six and then climb down after me." He said and without any hesitance, he climbed down until he was out of sight, which was quite quick.

"1…2…3-3…4…5…6-6." She finished. Carefully, she settled herself on the ladder.

"You alright there, Katrina?" She heard Ichabod call up to her.

"Y-Yeah," She stuttered, "It's really dark down there."

"Just take a step at a time." He assured her. "Besides, I'm right behind you. If you fall, I'll just catch you."

"O-Okay then." And she slowly began to climb down. Every second, she would stop and feel for the next step, then would continue.

"You're doing great, Katrina!" He called out. Katrina smiled, glad that she got a compliment from him. Then she realized something.

"Ic-Ichabod," she stuttered, not used to calling him by that name, "If I can call you that, I was wondering about something. Uncle Drosselmeyer told me that your mother disappeared, but up there, you said that she was dead." Silence, except for their footsteps on the ladder.

_Pink! Pink! Pink! Pin-_"When my mother couldn't be found anywhere around the castle or in her garden, my father sent out all his guards to search for her. Months went by, but my father kept searching. All seemed lost. Then, Lucinda came and got acquainted with Father. Shortly after her first visit, he proclaimed that my mother was obviously dead since she was unable to be found. This broke my heart and angered me. Father gave up on my mother because of some pretty girl!" His yell echoed throughout the tunnel. "When…Emily told me about Lucinda's plans and how she was a witch, all I could think was how such a woman would be so heartless to kill someone so young and enchant a man to fall in love with her so she could get closer to the throne." His voice cracked there for a bit.

"Ichabod," Was all Katrina could say. Finally, the two landed at the bottom of the hole. "Where's the Sugar Plum Princess?"

"Shush!" Ichabod quieted her.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"I sense someone, and I don't think it's the princess." He unsheathed his sword and pulled at something, a torch that magically lit up in his hand. Now that Katrina could see, she could see that the space they were in was round and really small. And empty, all except for the two of them.

"I don't see anyone, Ichabod." Katrina said.

"Behind you." He said. She turned around to see a woman glaring at him, sword to her chest.

"Who are you?" She asked. "Who are you?"

"Please, miss," Katrina tried to say calmly, "W-We're just here to see the Sugar Plum Princess and-"How do I know you're not spies from the Queen?" The woman interrupted.

"When I say so," Ichabod whispered, "You run and search for the princess. Tell her that I'm here." He reached into his pockets and pulled out a long dagger and a small piece of cardboard with a cage on one side and a bird on the other. It had a string going through it. "Give her this to prove your story," he said about the cardboard, "And the dagger is to protect you from enemies in case you come across any. Okay?"

"Ichabod, I-"Don't be afraid." He said. "That's the most important thing; don't be afraid. Promise me that."

"I promise." Katrina said, holding the dagger in her hand and putting the cardboard in her nightgown.

"Good, now…RUN!" He swung around and hit his sword against the woman's. Katrina began to run, but she didn't get far, for two other figures blocked the way.

"Where do you think you're going?" A man said in a soft voice.

"Nowhere," Another woman said also in a soft voice, "That's what." Katrina backed up, but then looked down to see the dagger in her hand. She raised it up and ran up to where the second woman spoke and stabbed her right in the chest.

"Aaaah!" She cried out, holding the dagger to her chest. _What have I done? _Katrina looked down at her hand. _I've…I killed someone! _"Oh my goodness!" The woman said, standing up tall. "I'm sorry, but the look on your face!" She chuckled, pulling the dagger out with ease.

"Y-You-"Guys wait!" The first woman said. The two turned to her. The woman looked at Ichabod. "Ichabod Crane, Sire? Is it…really you?"

"Impossible," The second woman said, "He died quite a while ago."

"Clean your eyes, Victoria," The woman said, "You've been living in the dark so long that you have lost your sight."

"Maybe lighting these torches will help." The man said. Suddenly, the torches were lit and Katrina saw the most terrifying thing in all her life.

The woman with the sword had shockingly blue skin and hair. Her lips were a pink color and the hand not holding the sword was skeletal as well as, if Katrina looked down, one of her legs. Behind her, the woman named Victoria, still holding the dagger, had light brown hair hanging down, and covering her face. She pushed back some of the hair, revealing her skin was blue like the first woman. Her dress, a red one, ripped at the neck, revealing her blue chest. Only her arms were skeletal.

The man had dark brown hair coifed back, a lock hanging down his face. His skin was also blue and his suit was ripped in many places. She could see that his entire chest was skeletal, his blue heart resting in the middle.

The shock, fear, all that she had gone through that day (or night?), and just her wound, were too much for the sheltered young girl. It all went black.

Katrina awoke to someone speaking.

"We must have really spooked her badly I guess." It was the corpse man!

"She's had a long day, too," She heard Ichabod say, "And the wound she got didn't help either."

"I just can't believe that she stabbed Sweeney Todd right in the stomach!" The first woman exclaimed. "This girl has got some nerve!"

"Emily," Victoria scolded, "This is not the time to be talking about such things. Can't you see that she's hurt?"

"Never you fear," A completely different voice, one kind and sweet and dreamlike said, "Just a bit of my magic and she'll be as good as new."

"I can't let you do this, your majesty." Ichabod said coldly. "You can't just waste your magic on a cut like this."

"I am willing to spare a bit of my magic, Ichabod," The Sugar Plum Princess said, "For your true love."

"She is not my true love." Ichabod corrected her. "She's just a girl that Fabian decided to give me to. The only reason why she's here is because she had to be stubborn."

"Like we were." Emily said to him. Ichabod didn't say anything for a while.

"That's different." Ichabod said to her but she really knew it wasn't. He didn't think so either.

"She has strong feelings for you." The princess said.

"She's a teenage girl," Ichabod explained, "What she feels are feelings of true love are just a crush, nothing more. Soon enough, she'll go back home and marry some nice young man and have forgotten all about me." _Is that what he really thinks? _She let out a sob.

"I think she's coming to, sire." The man said, rubbing her wrist gently. She sighed in her mind and slowly opened her eyes to see the young man from earlier smiling down at her. "Thank goodness you're alright! We were so incredibly worried when you suddenly fainted!"

"You're…Victor, right?" Katrina asked.

"Uh…yes, actually." The man said. "Victor Van Dort at your service." He bowed to her. She slowly started to sit up. "Lie still," he said, placing a hand on the opposite shoulder, "Your wound may be healed, but you also had a long day. You should rest."

"Your wound was a minor wound, surprisingly," The princess said, "But you still were losing blood. You should be glad, Sweeney isn't usually merciful." Katrina now finally could get a good look at her. She was tall, a head shorter than Ichabod with flowing brown hair, like a waterfall with bright lovely brown eyes. She wore a simple, but beautiful, blue dress that was rather low neck, revealing the top of her breasts.

"You're…the Sugar Plum Princess?" Katrina asked.

"Yes I am." She answered, "And I am entirely grateful that you have brought him home. If he had come later, there would have probably been no hope for Burbaka. Ichabod, Victor, Emily, Victoria, if you would all please join me in the other room. We have things we need to discuss."

"Yes, your majesty," They all said and they all followed after her.

"Are you going to be alright?" Victor asked Katrina.

"If you said my wound is healed, then there is no need to worry about me." She said with a fake smile. "Besides, I'll just be sleeping anyway."

Victor smiled. "Alright then." He stood up. "If you need me, let me know." He joined the others.

Katrina looked Longley at Ichabod's handsome, but cold, face, next to the Sugar Plum Princess's beautiful face. _Of course he wouldn't love me. He has the beautiful princess to be with. Besides, he's a prince, she's a princess. They can marry and rule together when this is all over. Where would I go? Back home to my family._

She slowly stood up from the cot she was lying in.

"They don't need me," Katrina said, "I should leave them to their battles and such." And she left the room, finding the clearing, and began the climb up to the surface.

"Your Highness," The princess said. They were in a small room lit only by a lightbulb hanging above them, "I would like to introduce you to your army."

"This is Brom Van Brunt," She held her hand out to a young man with long red hair, "He is one of our best warriors."

"Your Highness,"

"Over here is one of our finest female warriors, Alice Kingsleigh." A woman with wavy blonde hair and a stoic face bowed before Ichabod.

"Elder Gunkecht," She pointed over to an old man hunched over himself with a long but thin beard, "He's our healer."

"Your Highness," He bowed headfirst.

"Sir," Ichabod said politely.

"Sailor Anthony Hope," A young innocent-looking young man with shoulder-length brown hair bowed before Ichabod.

When she was finished (imagine there's a bit more people), she said, "Now, Lucinda, as usual, is holed up in her castle, but news gets around. By this time, a wounded Sweeney will have recounted the whole story to her and she'll have sent guards to search for you." She looked at Ichabod. "One of the first places she'll look is the forest, knowing that I'm against her and that I'm a friend of yours. Hopefully, she'll never find this place. But I don't want to take that chance. With your permission, your highness, I was thinking that at night, we'll travel down to the castle. From there, we will make our attack on the castle, you'll defeat Lucinda, and the kingdom will be restored. Questions?"

"Where are Edward, Barnabas, Carolyn, and Sam?" Ichabod asked. Everyone was silent.

"Ichabod," Emily started to say, "We…We haven't seen them since we were cursed like this."

"Edward ran off," Victoria said, "He was so ashamed by his hands, now cold blades, that he wanted just to hide."

"Barnabas and Carolyn are somewhere in the forest," Victor added too, "But they only come out at night and even then they hide from other people. And Sam…well you know his fate."

"Ichabod," The princess said, "I know what you're thinking. We have a plan. You can't just detour-"They're my friends too, your majesty." Ichabod interrupted.

"I refuse to leave them like this." Ichabod said. "They sacrificed just as much."

"So has Katrina." Emily suddenly said. Everyone except for Ichabod, the princess, Victor, and Victoria, murmured in confusion.

"I don't understand." Ichabod said.

"She risked her life to protect you from Sweeney," Emily said, "She fought to protect you. She even willingly came here, not knowing about this land and leaving her family behind her. You don't think she's confused and scared? Well she is. Just like you were all that time you were a doll in a strange new land. The thing is, you didn't have a choice. She did."

An awkward silence fell after those words. The princess cleared her throat.

"Now," the princess said, "If there are no questions, then…meeting adjourned." As everyone filed out, Ichabod was left in a stunned silence.

"I-I didn't realize," Ichabod said, "I didn't think, about her feelings or anything."

"You were scared too." The Sugar Plum Princess said.

"I should probably apologize to her." Ichabod said.

"That might be easier said than done." Victor said, coming back into the room.

"What do you mean?" Ichabod asked.

"She's gone." Victor said simply.

"Oh no!" Ichabod shouted. "I have to go!"

"Wait, Ichabod!" The princess ran after him. She stopped him at the ladder.

"She doesn't know what's out there." Ichabod said, turning to her. "I have to rescue her. I'm not that heartless that I'll allow her to die."

"I wasn't going to say that," the princess said, "I was just going to say that you almost forgot your sword." Ichabod looked down at his empty sheath.

"Oh right. Thanks." He said, sheathing the sword. "I'll be back!" And he climbed up.

"So," Victoria asked Victor and Emily, "Do you think that he's in love with Katrina?"

"Yes." Emily and Victor both said at the same time.

"Which direction did we come from again?" Katrina asked herself. The forest looked the same from all sides. "Oh! I should have left a piece of string or a part of my dress. Something!" She groaned and leaned back against a tree. "I can't even go back to the hideout, so now I'm stuck here."

"You need any help?" A voice asked. Katrina looked up to see a tall and sexy woman with shoulder length blonde hair and wearing bright red lipstick. She was wearing a short v-neck black dress. She smiled sweetly at the girl.

"Yes!" Katrina exclaimed, standing up. "Oh thank you! You have no idea what I've been going through!"

"I have a feeling," The woman said, "I'm lost myself trying to look for a certain place. Tell you what, let's walk together and hopefully we'll get to where we want to go. Okay?"

"Okay." Katrina agreed. "My name's Katrina Van Tassel by the way."

"Mine's Agatha." The woman said.

"Nice to meet you, Agatha." Katrina said. "So what are you doing in this forest by yourself?"

"I'm looking for a friend of my boyfriend." Agatha said. "I haven't seen him in years."

"The friend or the boyfriend?" Katrina asked.

"Both." Agatha answered. Katrina stopped. "It got complicated between me and my boyfriend." She sighed. "Hopefully seeing his friend will make things right again between us. So how about you?"

"Trying to run away from someone." Katrina answered.

"Really?" Agatha exclaimed. "Was he someone…special?"

"I thought so," Katrina said sadly, "But then I found out that he doesn't really love me, so I decided to spare him and leave. He's got a prettier girl to be with anyway."

"Such a shame." Agatha said.

"Katrina!" She heard Ichabod call out.

"Oh no!" She exclaimed.

"Is this the secret crush you were talking about?" Agatha smirked.

"Katrina!" He shouted again. He ran up to her and took her in his arms.

"Ichabod!"

"Katrina," he said, "I am so, so sorry. I didn't realize what you did for me already. I'm really sorry, just please come back." He looked up to see Agatha. "You!" He growled.

"Ichabod, what's going on?" Katrina asked.

"Come on!" He yelled and the two ran off.

"Oh my goodness," Agatha cackled, "This was even better than I expected!"

"Angelique," She turned to see her healing boss coming towards her, "You did a fine job of tricking that girl."

"I did, didn't I?" Angelique smiled.

"Now go bloody get her already!" Sweeney yelled. "They're getting away!"

"Yes sir," Angelique sighed, and she ran off after them.

"_That _was Angelique?" Katrina asked. Ichabod had explained to her that Agatha wasn't actually Agatha.

"Yes," Ichabod said, "And it's a good thing I found you when I did. If she had followed you all the way back to the hideout, then she would have captured all of us."

"I didn't know," Katrina said to herself.

"Here we are." He said. He announced his title, then Katrina, then they went down the ladder as fast as they could. Thankfully, the lights were on so they could see where they were going.

"How did it-"We have to go. Now! Katrina encountered Angelique in the forest. No doubt she's following us as we speak."

"Attention, everyone!" The Sugar Plum Princess yelled. "We are about to be under attack! Grab whatever you can and form two straight lines. Calmly!" Everyone obeyed and they began to pack.

"Oh great!" Emily complained as she held her skeletal leg. "Can someone help me put my leg back on?"

"I'm a bit busy, Emily." Victoria said, her two arms on the floor. "Victor? Could you please-"I can't," He answered, "I'm trying to put my heart back in."

"Again?" Victoria asked. "Really, Victor?"

"Here," Katrina ran over to Emily, "I'll help." She took the leg and began to reattach it to the torso. "There we go." She said when she was finished. "Come here, Victoria." She took one arm and put it into her shoulder.

"Thanks, Katrina," She smiled, "I think I can get the other one." She picked up her other arm and attached it to her other shoulder.

"How do you attach your heart inside, Victor?" Katrina asked.

"I tie it to the thing that holds my heart up." Victor explained. "It's right at the bottom of my neck."

"Oh, I see." She said, looking at the stem thing hanging down. She took the heart and tied the steam around the top and it hung. "There."

"Thank you." He said. And the three corpses ran off to the secret underground entrance.

"Thanks for helping them." Ichabod said.

"Don't mention it," Katrina said, "I feel like they're my friends too."

"Ah, the little lovebirds," Angelique smiled, standing in front of them, "It's such a shame that I'll have to turn Ichabod back into a doll again."

"No!" Katrina stood in front of him. "I won't let you hurt him!"

"It's not going to hurt," Angelique said, "Not until I throw him into a fire, that is. Then, it just might hurt."

"What is your problem?" Katrina asked.

"Excuse me," The Sugar Plum Princess said, tapping Angelique's shoulder.

"Ah, 'Your Majesty'," Angelique smiled, "It's been such a long time. How are you?"

"I'm doing great," The princess said, "Just trying to beat your boss, that's all."

"You're never going to defeat her, even with the prince's help." Angelique said. "I'll destroy him so you'll never have even the chance of saving your home."

"If you want him," She snapped her fingers and appeared in front of Ichabod, "You'll have to go through me."

"Gladly," Angelique smirked, raising her arm. The princess followed her arm. She threw it to the right, and the princess followed suit.

She sat up, her hair falling in her face. "That's all you can do?" She twirled her wrist and an electric ball appeared in her hand. She released her hand and it shot at Angelique, who dodged it.

_Go, I'll hold her off._ Katrina could suddenly hear the princess's voice in her head. Ichabod seemed to as well, for he sadly nodded and took her hand.

"Come on." He whispered and the two ran off.

"You bitch!" Angelique shouted, about to run off after them. Before she could, the princess looked at the wall and rocks fell, covering the entrance. She looked at the other wall and the rocks fell there too. She looked up at the ceiling and the rocks began to fall from there.

"You complete idiot!" Angelique laughed out loud. "You may be trying to kill me, but you have also trapped yourself here as well! Oh, this will go to the grave!"

"Not quite." The princess said. She smiled and snapped her fingers. She was gone in a flash.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" And the rocks overcame her.

The princess appeared in front of Ichabod and Katrina.

"Your majesty," Ichabod smiled, "You're alright!"

"Of course I am," The princess smiled back, "I can't leave my people without a leader, can I?" Katrina was smiling too, but she also looked a bit sad too. _What's wrong?_

"Your Highness," Anthony Hope came up to Ichabod, "What do we do now, sir? It's really late out."

"We'll have to find someplace to camp out, sailor." Ichabod answered. "But where?"

"Ichabod, over here!" Emily yelled out. "There's a cave over here. It seems to fit all of us."

"Excellent, Emily." Ichabod said.

"Ichabod," Katrina whispered, "Do you think this is some sort of trap?"

"Possibly," Ichabod whispered back, "But what choice do we have? Over here, guys!" He said that last part out loud. And the group walked into the cave as the sun was setting and a pair of black eyes looked at the group.

_End. I hope you enjoyed. Please review and tell me what you think. Burbakia is based on Tim Burton's hometown of Burbank._


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